Luminous gun sight



mammal OR 19423918Q J. S. BUTLER. LUMINOUS GUN SIGHT.

APPLICATION FILED NOV.20, |9I8-" Patented July 18, 1922.

UNITED STATES Ui CHLDIIIGI PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN S. BUTLER, OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY, ASSIGNOR TO NEWTON D. BAKER, SECRETARY OF WAR, TRUSTEE.

LUMINOUS GUN SIGHT.

Application filed November 20, 1918.

Specification of Letters Patent.

(FILED UNDER THE ACT OF MARCH 3, 1883, 22 STAT. L, 625.)

To all to 710m it may concern Be it known that 1, JOHN S. BUTLER, Lieut. Ord. Dept, U. S. A., a citizen of the United States, stationed at W'ashington, D. (l, have invented an Improvement in Luminous Gun Sights, of which the following is a specification.

The invention described herein may be used by the Government, or any of its officers or employees in prosecution of work for the Government, or by any other person in the United States, without payment of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to improvements in sights for guns and refers more particularly to luminous sights for machine rifles.

The principal object of the invention is to provide luminous sights of simple construction by means of which a gun may be operated at night, luminous bodies being afl ixed to the usual front and rear sights of the gun, by means of which the gun may be aligned in the dark.

Another object of the invention is to pro vide auxiliary luminous sight attachments of inexpensive and elfective construction, which may be readily attached to and detached from the permanent sights on a machine rifle to render the same adaptable for use at night.

With the foregoing and other important objects in view, my invention comprises the novel and useful details of design and construction, which will be fully described herein, illustrated in the annexed drawings, and pointed out more specifically in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein the preferred embodiment of my invention is shown, like reference characters refer to like or corresponding parts throughout the several views.

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a machine rifle with the sights of my invention removably attached thereto.

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the luminous rear sight in place about the corresponding permanent sight of the rifle.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail elevation of my rear sight attachment.

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional View of one of the luminous units with which my attachments are equipped, the view being taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged vertical section of the rear sight leaf and slide of the rifle, showing my luminous sight attachment engaged thereto.

Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the front sight of the gun with my luminous sight device affixed thereon.

Fig. 7 is a detail side elevation of my front sight fixture, one of the guard flanges being broken away to illustrate the relative position of the luminous unit; and

Fig. 8 is an enlarged front elevation of my front sight attachment.

Referring generally to the drawings, it will be seen that my invention comprises a front and a rear sight attachment adaptable for removable engagement, respectively, to the front and rear sights as permanently attached to a machine rifle A. The front at tachment is designated generally as 10 and the rear attachment as 11.

Front sight attachment 10, illustrated in Figs. 1, 4, 6, 7 and 8, comprises a pair of coacting spring clips 12, adapted to engage about the rounded base 13 of the permanent front gun sight 14, the clips 12 being united by a bridge 15, perforated at 16 to allow the gun sight to project thcreabove. Projecting upward from bridge 15, and directly in the line of sight rearward of sight 14 is a verti- (ally elongated luminous body comprising a case 17 in which an Lip-standing glass tube 18 is packed, the glass tube being filled with luminous material 20, as is illustrated in Fig. 4. The case. is preferably formed of sheet metal and the luminous tube is surrounded by cement or asbestos packing 21, to prevent the movement of the tube within the case, and also, especially in the case of the rear sight, to insulate the luminous material from the heat' of the gun. An elongated slot 19 is provided on the rear face of the case, through which the tube may be seen by the operator of the gun, the tube, as before stated, being directly in the line of sight and between the front gun sight and the operator. The attachment is revicled with upstanding guard flanges 2 on each side of the tube case 17, in position to protect the luminous tube and case from injury, the flanges being bent slightly inward to prevent them from catching upon adjacent objects when the gun is in use.

The rear sight attachment 11, as illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4L and 5, is adapted to fit upon the rear gun sight slide 23 mounted upon the rifle in a well known manner, and comprising the integral sight bridge 28, having the usual sight perforation 24 and upper bridge 25 thereabove, the slide unit being slidable vertically on the leaf 26. My attachment comprises a flat sheet metal plate 11 adapted to be engaged against the rear face of the slide 23 and having a forwardly extending hooked spring slip 27 adapted to engage over the sight bridge 28 of the slide. The upper edge of my attachment is bent rearwardly and then forwardly to provide a spring flange 29 adapted to yieldingly engage beneath the lower edge of the upper bridge 25 to furthen hold the device in place in an obvious manner. The plate 11 is perforated at 30, the center of which perforation is the center of the sight 24 on the slide 23, when the attachment is in proper adjustment with respect to the slide, said perforation being preferably larger in diameter than the sight on the slide, so that the gun sight may appear distinctly therethrough. Fixed in any suitable manner on the rear face of plate 11, and spaced on each side of the perforation 30 are horizontally arranged luminoustube units 17 similar to the luminous body previously described with reference to the front sight. The lower edge of plate 11 is turned rearwardly to form a flange 32, by means of which the operator may grasp the attachment to spring the clip 27 and the spring flange 29 into and out of place on the gun sight. Flange 32 Will also act as a guard to prevent the displacement of the luminous units when handling the attachment.

In operation, it will be readily seen that my attachments may be quickly attached as described to the front and rear sights of a machine rifle, or removed therefrom in an obvious manner, and that the gun may be easily sighted at night when the operator aligns the gun with the luminous unit on the front attachment showing through the sight perforation 24 on the rear gun sight, the horizontally arranged luminous units on the rear attachment making it possible for the operator to readily align the front sight mid-way between said rear luminous units, thus readily locating the rear sight on the gun with respect to the line of sight.

\Vhat I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. An attachment for a rear gun sight; said sight characterized by a leaf, a slide adjustable on said leaf, the slide including an apertured sighting bridge and an upper bridge; including side and upper bridge engaging members, spring means interposed between said members for forcing the same into engagement with the side and upper bridge members and sight aperture ilhnninating elements carried by said spring means.

2. An attachment for a rear gun sight; said sight characterized by a leaf, a slide adjustable on said leaf, the slide including an apertured sighting bridge and an upper bridge; including a flange adapted to engage under the upper bridge, a hook adapted to engage over the sighting bridge, resilient means interposed between the flange and the hook for forcing them into engagement with said bridges and luminous elements carried by the attachment for illuminating the sight.

JOHN S. BUTLER. 

